LG TO USE WEBOS TO POWER THEIR SMARTWATCHES NEXT YEAR

LG is no stranger to the Smart Watch with their stylish G Watch R. However, up until this point their watches have been solely powered by Google’s Android Wear operating system; as are the majority of smartwatches on the market. At CES, LG revealed that they are targeting to release a future smartwatch powered by their wholly owned operating system, WebOS.  In fact, the Smartwatch that was demoed unlocking the new Audi was LG’s WebOS powered smartwatch. SlashGear put out a demo that was very well done. Take a look at it below:

The WebOS operating system was originally developed for Palm devices. It was then sold to Hewlett-Packard, who attempted to make it an open source platform. However, after being considered a severe flop, HP decided to sell it to LG which surprised many analysts. However, it appears that LG is making strides in turning the operating system around and getting a surprise return on investment.

According to the Wall Street Journal:

The company said in June 2014 that it shipped more than 1.1 million WebOS-based televisions, which compares to some 20,000 mobile devices sold…

It appears that LG is looking at leveraging new products and experiences to get in front of the consumer with WebOS. The Chief Technology Officer at LG, Dr. Scott Ahn, revealed in an interview on Forbes that they have even bigger plans for the operating system beyond just smartwatches and televisions.

We’d like to make a lighter, smaller version of WebOS to apply to home appliances or some other possible mobile devices—but not mobile phones, it’s already been done. We’re gradually expanding the program

WebOS has the potential to become a flagship operating system for the internet of things as their strategy is to create a simplified operating system experience that could be used with a variety of appliances such as smart fridges, smart washers, and more. If they can get ahead of the competition by becoming a prominent operating system as new connected devices are released, LG could be poised as strong competition against the likes of Apple and Android. They’re not alone either. Blackberry is looking at leveraging the same strategy with a wave of new connected devices with their recently announced Internet of Things platform.

This is an interesting time for the internet of things. A connected and integrated world could make for a much more effective (and AWESOME!) version of the life we live. However, until we can do a better job in the cyber-security realm, we’re likely to see a level of resistance as more devices carry personal data for more reasons. Time will tell.

What are your thoughts on a WebOS smartwatch? Does it excite you to see more operating system options? Or are you satisfied with Google and Apple’s offerings? Let us know in the comments below. 

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